Cost of living comparison
compared to
New Jersey vs. Costa Rica Cost of Living Summary
New Jersey is 85.5% more expensive than Costa Rica overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 48.5% more in New Jersey
- Groceries
-
pay 51.6% more in New Jersey
- Transportation
-
pay 21.9% more in New Jersey
- Housing
-
pay 2.4 times more in New Jersey
- Childcare
-
pay 3.4 times more in New Jersey
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 89.6% more in New Jersey
- Clothing
-
pay 10.9% more in New Jersey
The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, groceries, restaurants, and transportation in New Jersey are more expensive than in Costa Rica. Notably, childcare, housing, and entertainment and sports are significantly more expensive in New Jersey.
New Jersey vs. Costa Rica Cost Breakdown
If you lived in New Jersey instead of Costa Rica, you would:
pay 48.5% more for restaurants
|
Costa Rica
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$9.77
CRC4,772.77
|
$19.95
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.53
CRC4,657.00
|
$12.40
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
CRC977.87
|
$2.60
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.57
CRC767.80
|
$2.04
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Jersey - Cost of restaurants
pay 51.6% more for groceries
|
Costa Rica
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.54
CRC1,240.79
|
$4.17
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.50
CRC2,198.95
|
$8.09
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.52
CRC3,675.18
|
$4.78
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.80
CRC1,365.53
|
$5.24
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.83
CRC1,869.62
|
$5.96
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.78
CRC871.36
|
$2.76
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.62
CRC300.41
|
$0.98
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.65
CRC804.74
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.24
CRC606.70
|
$2.62
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.28
CRC624.18
|
$1.44
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.10
CRC537.59
|
$1.60
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Jersey - Cost of groceries
pay 21.9% more for transportation
|
Costa Rica
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.47
CRC2,671.86
|
$3.24
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$54.59
CRC26,665.03
|
$116.02
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,444.91
CRC17,802,336.11
|
$32,841.50
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.68
CRC7,658.69
|
$19.75
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Jersey - Cost of transportation
pay 2.4 times more for housing
|
Costa Rica
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$49.17
CRC24,020.20
|
$62.68
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$805.28
CRC393,355.72
|
$2,279.92
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$555.89
CRC271,535.63
|
$1,885.98
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$63.57
CRC31,052.11
|
$126.74
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Jersey - Cost of housing
pay 3.4 times more for childcare
|
Costa Rica
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$517.09
CRC252,582.05
|
$2,023.96
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,552.94
CRC4,666,349.20
|
$27,267.62
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Jersey - Cost of childcare
pay 89.6% more for entertainment and sports
|
Costa Rica
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.59
CRC1,263.41
|
$6.95
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.84
CRC1,875.13
|
$5.20
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.70
CRC2,295.55
|
$12.79
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$58.68
CRC28,663.36
|
$52.90
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.11
CRC4,448.49
|
$16.52
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Jersey - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 10.9% more for clothing
|
Costa Rica
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$58.22
CRC28,437.03
|
$57.64
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$44.70
CRC21,835.84
|
$49.26
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$112.79
CRC55,095.43
|
$99.28
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$93.41
CRC45,626.70
|
$136.81
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Jersey - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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